⚔️ Battlefields
Rorke's Drift
In brief
22–23 January 1879 — the mission station engagement following Isandlwana.
The same place today
Museum and ELC Art & Craft Centre on the Buffalo River.
Approximate position: -28.35, 30.53 — indicative, not a survey point.
What is uncertain
Dates, exact boundaries and associations for historic homesteads and capitals often rest on oral tradition and later reconstruction. Treat the evidence label above as the strength of this summary — check the sources before citing it as fact.
Related eras, people and events
- King Cetshwayo & the Anglo-Zulu War (1872 – 1879)
People: Cetshwayo, Ntshingwayo kaMahole, Dabulamanzi kaMpande, Lord Chelmsford
Coronation, 1873 · British ultimatum, 1878 · Isandlwana & Rorke's Drift, Jan 1879 · Hlobane & Kambula, Mar 1879 · Ulundi, Jul 1879 · Exile to Cape Town and London
Explore related places
Events here
- Defence of Rorke's Drift · 22–23 January 1879
Explore the ground
Satellite, street and terrain views, with Street View and Google Earth links.
Pages about Rorke's Drift
Each link opens a specific page about this place on the holder's own site. The material stays with them.
- Wikipedia — Battle of Rorke's Drift ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Article on the battle, with its order of battle, casualties and a list of published references to follow.
WikipediaCommunity contribution - Wikimedia Commons — photographs and maps: Battle of Rorke's Drift ↗ (opens in a new tab)
A curated collection of photographs, historic illustrations and maps of this place. Check each file's licence.
Wikimedia CommonsDigitised copy
Search further in the archives
Archive searches for Rorke's Drift
Each link opens the holder's own search, already filled in. The records stay with them.
- UK National Archives — colonial records for “Rorke's Drift” ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Catalogue entries for Colonial Office and War Office files — despatches, reports and correspondence.
The National Archives (Kew)Archive catalogue - Internet Archive — period books and reports mentioning “Rorke's Drift” ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Full-text search of digitised 19th- and 20th-century books, Blue Books and travel accounts.
Internet ArchiveDigitised copy - Wikimedia Commons — photographs and maps of “Rorke's Drift” ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Openly licensed photographs, historic maps and illustrations. Check each file's licence.
Wikimedia CommonsDigitised copy - South African History Online — articles on “Rorke's Drift” ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Published histories and biographies. A secondary source — follow its references.
SAHOCommunity contribution - Wikipedia — overview of “Rorke's Drift” ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Community-written overview with references. Use it as a starting point, not as evidence.
WikipediaCommunity contribution - FamilySearch catalogue — records filed under “Rorke's Drift” ↗ (opens in a new tab)
Church registers, civil registration and estate films catalogued for this place. Free account needed to view images.
FamilySearchGenealogy database